Hate crimes affect members of minority groups all over the world. Some countries take it more seriously than others by passing and enacting hate crime prevention laws, and by investigating suspected cases and prosecuting perpetrators so as to deliver justice to victims. The number of suspected hate crimes registered by Finnish police have increased more…
Category: Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng
Zuzeeko’s blog: 1960-style racial abuse in a store in Finland, and silent onlookers
Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng* Things happen in modern-day Finland that look like scenes out of the U.S. in the 1960s when black people, such as 6-year-old Ruby Bridges, were taunted by angry members of the white community who opposed racial integration of public schools. Ihmisoikeusliitto, a human rights organisation that monitors the human rights situation in…
Zuzeeko’s blog: Racist vandalism is costly for Helsinki city
Perpetrators of racism (racists) give all sorts of reasons in an attempt to justify or explain their twisted perception or treatment of fellow human beings who happen to look different. Sometimes economic reasons are evoked. Some in Finland argue, for instance, that migrants from Africa and elsewhere are “welfare shoppers” who move to the country…
Zuzeeko’s blog: Skin color matters in Finland, Yle hidden camera shows
Dark-skinned people in Finland struggle with discrimination on a daily basis. On week days many struggle in vain to find work related to their studies — or even unpaid internships. Some of those who have given up seeking skilled jobs are sometimes mistreated, disrespected and exploited in odd jobs for which they are overqualified. On…
Zuzeeko’s blog: Minorities in Finland face unequal treatment, even in death
Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng* Family murders are common in Finland and whenever they happen the media mentions the nationality or origin of the perpetrator and the victim. But the origin of the most recent victim of Finland’s string of disturbing family murders was kept under wraps. Some people, including me wonder why. On 1 September 2013,…
Zuzeeko’s blog: MPs ignore bigger fish to fry in Finnish society
Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng Public discourse in Finnish online forums and blogs written by far-right elements and Finns Party MPs suggest that immigration is the biggest problem in Finland, but a closer look at Finnish society reveals more pertinent issues that people on the far-right of the political divide ignore, including domestic violence, family killings and…
Zuzeeko’s blog: Finland – Discrimination accounts for high Somali unemployment
Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng Somalis are among the largest groups of immigrants in Finland. They are also among the largest unemployed group of immigrants in the country. Many people [mistakenly] think that the high rate of unemployment among Somalis is because they are not willing to work. This, in my view, is not the case. Read…
City of Helsinki shouldn’t contract companies exploiting foreign workers
By Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng Foreign workers in the cleaning services sector in Finland face exploitation and abuse from employers and sometimes from customers. The authorities, including city councils that award cleaning contracts to companies that violate employment rules and collective agreements share the blame. Image: The Copenhagen Post According to a Yle report, work safety inspections conducted in…
Zuzeeko’s blog: Ask Finland’s Minister of Interior to stop detention of innocent children
Zuzeeko Tegha Abeng The International Convention on the Rights of the Child – to which Finland is party – outlaws the detention of children, unless as a last resort and for the shortest possible time (see article 37[b]) and obligates States Parties to ensure that a child seeking asylum receives appropriate protection and assistance (see Article 22)….